The paper reports a research study aimed at investigating the appeal and pedagogical efficacy of animated teaching avatars. Specifically, the goal of the study was to determine whether animated characters could be effective and engaging teachers in the context of undergraduate surveying mathematics. The study included two forms of evaluation:…

This paper deals with a novel method for improving the traditional "verification" laboratory in science education. Drawing on the idea of integrated instructional units, we describe an instructional sequence which we call the Babushka concept. This concept consists of three integrated instructional units: a start-up lecture, a laboratory…

Research has established that students often consider the delivery of instructor feedback to be a face-threatening event. To minimize the potential negative effects of feedback, verbal and nonverbal face-threat mitigation (FTM) strategies are utilized by instructors. Advances in digital feedback systems, like online documents and learning…

Although students make some epistemological progress during college, most graduate without developing meaning-making strategies that reflect an understanding that knowledge is socially constructed. Using a pre-test-post-test design and a within-subjects 2 × 2 mixed-design ANOVA, this study reports on empirical findings which support the Socratic…

The aim of this study was to apply current pedagogical research in order to develop an effective course and exercise structure for a physical chemistry thermodynamics course intended for second or third year university students of chemistry. A mixed-method approach was used to measure the impact the changes had on student learning. In its final…

A socioscientific issues integrated instruction was used in the study to resolve college students attitude towards sexually-themed science content. Some 200 college students participated in the study as experimental and control groups. The former consisting of 98 students from one college was taught the content using the socioscientific issues…

This study examined achievement when an interactive textbook (iBook) was used in place of lecture to teach students to create instructional flipcharts for a Promethean interactive whiteboard. The study was conducted with students enrolled in a required technology course for teachers at a large research-intensive university in the southeastern…

This paper reports on a research project that investigated the effects of a flipped instructional approach on student attitudes and achievement in a lower division university-level Finite Mathematics course. The project employed a mixed-methods design that included content exams, an attitude survey, open-ended student responses, observations, and…

Screencasting, or digital recordings of computer screen outputs, can be used to promote pedagogical transformation in the mathematics classroom by moving explicit, procedural-based instruction to the online environment, thus freeing classroom time for more student-centered investigations, problem solving, communication, and collaboration. This…

Lecturing is a common instructional format but poor lecturing skills can detract from students' learning experiences and outcomes. As lecturing is essentially a form of public communication, training in public speaking may improve lecture quality. Twelve university lecturers in Malaysia participated in a six-week public speaking skills training…

The purpose of this study was to address the gap in research regarding the use of cooperative learning instructional methods in college mathematics courses to prepare future teachers. Bruner's constructivist theory and social interdependence theory guided this study. The research questions focused on the effects of the use of cooperative learning…

The incidence and prevalence of alternative conceptions in science have been reported by a number of researchers. This article reports findings of a study involving the development and implementation of two intervention programmes to address alternative conceptions related to interference and diffraction of waves among 133 first year university…

There is a lack of student learning and critical thinking skills in post-secondary macroeconomics courses. The literature indicates that the lack of learning outcomes can be attributed to the reliance on traditional lecture and the failure to adopt innovative instructional techniques. The purpose of this study was to investigate the student…

This action research study, set in a community college in the southwestern United States, was designed to investigate the effects of implementing cooperative learning strategies in a developmental mathematics course. Introductory algebra was formerly taught in a lecture based format, and as such regularly had a low course completion rate. To…

This article describes the evaluation of an online study skills course unit designed, using evidence-based principles, to support undergraduate students. A mixed-methods approach was employed to establish the extent to which the unit was (a) fit for purpose and (b) effective. Data were obtained from an online survey (n = 63) conducted on entry to…